Fishhook



Sept. 22, 1936. g, R; OU' 'D I 2,054,976

FISHHOOK Filed April 22, 1935 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY.

Patented Sept. 22, 1936 UNITED STATES PATEN FF C 1,

i v F1sHHo'o 7 Robert R. Gould, Dallas Tex.

Application April'22, 1935, Serial No, 17,609 7 lsfciai ms." (oi; 4-3-38) 5 Y 1 This invention'relates to a new and improved fish hook having the usual barbed point shaped in more or less conventional form, and also having a fiat, curved spring rigidly 'securedto' the shank of the hook by welding or soldering one end of said'spring to the shank, and positioning the opposite end of the spring normally adjacent the barb of the'hook, but permitting the spring to straighten, when pressure is ap-* plied thereto away from the barb, toward the curved body of the hook to thereby open a clear space between the barb and the spring end, for

entrance of the jaw of the'fish thereinto, and when impaled on the hook point.

Any pressure exerted from within'the opened spring to withdraw from the hook, tends to hold the fish on the hook by the movement of the spring to return to normal position.

While the hook structurein which the'strong spring, which will usually be a fiat leaf spring, 7

will be embodied, is preferably adapted for normally bridging the space between the barb and the shank, many forms of my device having this closed feature may well be provided with means for setting the hook for sudden tripping to positively impale the fish thereon, when slight pressure exerteddownwardly against the point, releasesthe spring to return to the'normal position near the point. Such leaf spring mounted on the hook shank may be used, with or without the said setting means for the tripping action, so that the leaf spring attachment may be used with several embodimentsthereof more or less common tothe several hook, structures. I

With these and other objects in view, a's'they will appear as the description proceeds, my 1nven'tion comprises certain novel'features of 1 construction hereinafter described in the sp'ecification, recited in the claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which,--

Figure 1 showsa side elevation of one form of my fish hook;

Figure 2 is a similar. elevation showing the 7 spring released; 45

Figure 3 is shown in Fig. 2; a

Figure 4 is a sectional fragmentary view showing the section taken in the plane indicated by the line 4'-4 of Fig. 1; M p

Figures 5 and ,6show side elevations of amodified form of fish hook, in the set and released positions, respectively;

Figure ,7 is a front elevation of the form shown.

in'Fig. 5;

plane indicated by the line 8-8 of Fig. 5; and

Figures 9 andjlO show side andfrontfleleva a front elevation of structure.

Figure 8 is a horizontal section taken in the The improved fish hook here disclosed comprises the usual up-turned point 5 integral with the main shank 6 solid, strong and ending withan eye '5 for the usual attaching means. It is desirable to employ the ordinary barb 8 directed downwardly and inwardly "to assist in retaining the fish, when once caughtby insertion of the point 5. My novel structure embodies therein, a flat,.though curved,'leaf spring 9 whose lower end It will normally rest closely adjacent the barb '8, and sometimes positioned near the hook point 5. Thisspring 9 is rigidly attached at its upper "end llto thehook shank 6, by welding or'soldering them together forming a protuberance I2 on said shank.

This spring willnormally remain substantially in contact with the barb 8 until some pressure bears downwardly upon the lower end Ill when itiyields to such pressure as by the struggle ofa fish on the point 5 tending to escape from the latter, which "struggle serves to open the spring end It] and secure the fish on the point 5 with still greater force, while attempt to move upwardly .awayfrom the end 10, serves to force the ba'rbpoint 8 into'the flesh of the jaw, the spring end 10" acting to clamp parts 8 and 5 into the .fish as the spring normally moves the fish against these sharp points. The thin, leaf.

spring 9 in a position more nearlyparallel with the shank 6, as shown in Fig. 1, which is done by'the provision of a loop 14 on one end of such hook l3 through which the shank is threaded, and'the'loop oreye l4 being'large enough to receive therein the end 10 of the spring" 9, and

retain the small hook'l3 adjacent the hook 5 in a "set position, but slightly advanced above the level 'of the hook point 5, until the spring is [released .The eye 14 is slidable upon'the sh'an'k'fi. s

.ltpisa'further purpose'of'the hook l3 to receiv'ethereon live bait such as a 'minnow which willbe held for a longer timegthough permitting movement thereof while living, than v.live bait is ordinarily retained in such position. .The hook I3 may be drawn'down into the positionshown in Fig. 2 while the spring end III is pressed" toward the shank 6, when the hook I3 may be pushed upward to the firstposition to receive the .end l.i l ,again in'the eyef"l4 The release'ot the spring'endwill evidentlyserve to impale the fish on the hook 5 and retain it there against struggling to be released. It will be evident that slight pressure upon the hook point I3 will trip the latter and release the spring.

In Figs. 5, 6, 7, and 8, is shown the spring 9, shank and hook point 5, as in the other forms, but

is'here shown with an outer and additional leaf spring I5 positioned in parallelism with the upper end I I of the spring 9, the two spring ends being welded or soldered at the common protuberance I2 upon the shank 6. At a point I6 slightly spaced from the end of the outer spring I5, is provided an extended wire I! welded thereto.

The wire or slender rod I1 is rigidly attached at I6 to one edge of spring I5, so that the rod may extend to the barb 8 by clearing the hook shank 6 on one side thereof, as shown clearly in Fig. 5. On the remote end of the rod I I is provided a small loop I8 which, when the spring I5 is forcibly pressed forward from its normal or released position in Fig. 6, to the set position of Fig. 5 inwhich the spring I5 is more nearly straight, may then enclose the barb 8 to retain the parts in their set position, the loop I8 then being immediately beneath the end I0 of the spring 9 which is in its normal position in Figs. 5 and 6.

Since the spring I5 is shown in Figs. 5 and 8, under tension, it will 'be evident that a rear pressure exerted on the parts 5 and ID by a fish, as when it grasps bait on the hook, will also contact the ,end Ill and press the latter rearwardly against the loop I8, thereby releasing the same from the barb 8 and permitting the spring I5 to return to its normal position in Fig. 6 which serves to space the remote ends of the two springs apart, as well as positively space the end of I5 outwardly from the shank 6. This latter action greatly spaces the spring, I5 from the point 5, and thereby more positively inserts such point 5 into the flesh of the fish, and prevents escape from the hook.

Recapitulating; all forms of the improved fish hook here illustrated, disclose the fiat, thin leaf spring attached at its upper end rigidly upon the shank 6 of a hook having a barb 8, the said spring being normally curved away from the said shank and of proper length to be positioned substantially adjacent said barb, and permitting swinging" inwardly and downwardly away from said barb upon receiving downward pressure thereon, as by a bite of a fish attempting to grasp bait held on the hook point 5, or on a smaller hook I3, as in the first form. The end I I of the spring 9 is soldered or welded at I2 upon the hook shank, in all forms.

' The forms of my invention shown in the first eight views of the drawing, all show a spring which is a leaf spring soldered or welded to the shank or the hook, and also provide a particular means for holding the lower end of the spring under tension and which, when the means stated is tipped, releases the leaf spring to make more certain and positive the impaling of the fish on the main hook point 5. In'Figs. 1 to 4, the loop I4.is slipped off the spring end Ill; and in Figs. 5 to 8, the loop I8 is slipped off the barb 8 to release theirod I! and its spring I5.

Having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is.-- V 1. A fishing device comprising a hook having an upturned point and a downwardly and inwardly directed barb, a leaf spring rigidly secured at its upper end upon the shank of the hook, by soldering or welding, thereby forming an integral metal protuberance, and having at its lower end a portion normally curved in a direction away from the hook shank, and adapted to be pressed manually toward said shank, a trip device having a loop or eye at one end thereof for engaging loosely a portionof the hook to retain the end of the spring under tension, but yieldable to pressure from above by a fish to trip the device to release the tensioned spring to move awayfrom the shank and exert pressure on-the point when the fish struggles to escape.

2. A fishing device comprising a hook having an upturned point and a downwardly and inwardly directed barb, a. leaf spring rigidly secured at its upperend upon the shank of the hook by soldering or welding, thereby forming an integral metal protuberance upon said shank; and having at the lower end of said spring a portion normally curved in a direction away from the hook shank, and adapted to be pressed under tension manually toward said shank, a trip member having a loop at one end thereof for enclosing loosely a portion of said hook and to receive. on said loop the tension end of said spring to retain the latter in said tensioned position, but said loop being yieldable to pressure downward away from said protuberance by a fish to trip the wire loop to release the tension end of the spring to permit the latter end to move away from the shank and exert pressure on the point whenthe fish struggles to escape.

3. A fishing device comprising a hook having an upturned point and a downwardly directed barb, a' leaf spring rigidly secured at one end to the inner surface of the hook shank by an integral metal protuberance, and having the opposite end thereof movable away from the shank to normally exert pressure against said barb, but yieldable downwardly away from said barb and 7 point and under tension manually to set said spring, a trip member having at one end a loop for receiving therethrough the shank of the hook, and at the other end asmaller hook integral with said loop, the latter being sufficiently' secured at one end to the shank and having the other end free and normally disposed adjacent the barb, and a looped member loosely disposed on the hook and adapted to engage the free end of the yieldable member to releasably hold the yieldable member under tension and away from the barb.

5. A fishing device comprising a hook including a shank and a barb, a yieldable member secured at one endito the shank and having the other end free and normallydisposed adjacent the barb, and a relatively small hook provided with a relatively large eye loosely engaging about the shank of the first hook, the eye of the small hook beingadapted to engage the free end of the yieldable member to releasably hold the yieldable member under tension and away from the barb. ROBERT R. GOULD. 

